CENTEGIX | Education
Michigan School Safety Standards
CENTEGIX | Education
Michigan School Safety Standards
Section 31aa: Grant Funding for Student Mental Health
Earlier this year, Governor Whitmer and the Michigan Legislature allocated funding for 2022-2023 school year for districts to carry out activities to improve student mental health. Eliglble applicants include districts, intermediate districts, nonpublic schools, and the Michigan Schools for the Deaf and Blind.
School safety initiatives that funds can be spent on include:
Coordination with local law enforcement
Training for school staff on threat assessment
Training for school staff and students on threat response
Training for school staff on crisis communication
Safety infrastructure such as cameras, hardened vestibules, and technology necessary to operate buzzer systems
Student Safety Management System
Any other school safety service or product necessary to improve or maintain security in buildings
A secure platform for all school safety-related items, including EOP templates, reference documents, and security assessments
Michigan schools can now apply for funding to establish and enhance school safety initiatives. The CENTEGIX® CrisisAlert™ wearable badge is the simplest, most reliable solution for obtaining help in an emergency.
We go beyond mobile phone panic alert apps:
Enables a rapid response anywhere on campus
Immediately alerts campus responders with the push of a button.
Provides precise room and floor-level location information to first responders.
One-button activation enables users to easily and rapidly request help.
Intercom, strobe, and desktop notifications in the event of a lockdown.
Request a demonstration today to learn how CrisisAlert meets the safety initiative requirements of 31aa and can make a measurable impact on the safety and security of your district.
Michigan School Safety Task Force
In 2018, Michigan’s School Safety Task Force issued a set of wide-ranging and far-reaching final recommendations for making Michigan public schools safer. Governor Rick Snyder created the School Safety Task Force to ” identify structural and policy recommendations for collaboration, planning, and assessment of school infrastructure and safety policies.” The Task Force recommended that Michigan schools do the following:
- Conduct physical security assessments.
- Implement interior and exterior security measures.
- Implement Emergency Operations Planning (EOP) training.
- Meet state compliance requirements.
- Integrate state guidance regarding emergency drills, definitions of terms, and threats of violence.
- Define the roles of safety personnel in schools.
- Adopt the OK2SAY program, which encourages students to report information about suspicious behaviors, bullying, suicide threats, anxiety, drugs, etc.
- Increase training for safety and security staff.
- Award schools that foster safe environments.
- Increase collaboration among public health experts and educators.
- Implement student behavioral health screenings.
These recommendations underscore Michigan lawmakers’ focus on school safety in recent years. These measures range from addressing behavioral health concerns to instituting school safety curricula to requiring secure infrastructure.
K-12 Behavioral Threat Assessment Training
In all of Michigan’s current and upcoming public school policies and legislation, focused attention on students’ mental health is a priority. Throughout 2022-23, the Michigan State Police Office of School Safety (MSP/OSS) is hosting Michigan K-12 Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (Mi-BTAM) training free of charge. This training is intended for school-based threat assessment teams in K-12 public, charter, and private schools. This training teaches teams to identify, engage, and work collaboratively with families and students to mitigate situational life factors contributing to thoughts of violence and aggression.
The Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management training enacts the School Safety Task Force’s mandate for behavioral health interventions. The training addresses topics including understanding school violence and implications for prevention, steps for developing and operating an effective school threat assessment program, and developing and implementing case management plans. Advanced training is available after the initial basic training is completed.
Competitive School Safety Grant Program Funds Safety Measures
The 2022 Competitive School Safety Grant Program (CSSGP) funds measures that fulfill the School Safety Task Force’s Recommendations. The Michigan Legislature appropriated $10 for these measures. The Grants and Community Services Division (GCSD) of the Michigan State Police (MSP) awarded and administered these competitive grants. Eligible grantees included public schools, nonpublic schools, school districts, and intermediate school districts. These grants fund measures that improve the safety and security of students, staff, and school buildings. Specifically, the CSSGP supports purchasing safety and security technology and equipment. The program also provides funds for technology upgrades and improvements to existing systems.
Michigan legislators will continue to prioritize safety and security in schools. Governor Gretchen Whitmer proposed increased funding for the 2022-23 fiscal year to $66 million in school safety grants. This number equals the total amount of funding for school safety distributed since 2015. According to Whitmer, “with this historic proposal and my larger education budget, which includes resources to improve every kid’s in-class experience, build and renovate school facilities, and retain and recruit more teachers, we will invest in every school and every district across Michigan.” School districts across the state will be eligible for this increased funding.
Recommended Safety Measures
In 2020, the US Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services (COPS) convened a School Safety Working Group that identified ten essential actions schools, school districts, and law enforcement agencies can take to mitigate and prevent school violence. COPS also recommended actions to facilitate swift and effective law enforcement assistance when it is necessary. The Michigan Office of School Safety highlights the role of School Resource Officers and collaboration with law enforcement as essential elements of its approach to making schools safer. COPS guidance regarding school safety measures, therefore, informs their recommendations.
The COPS School Safety Working Group’s “ten essential actions” address both the physical safety and the emotional security of students and staff members:
-
- comprehensive school safety assessment
- school climate
- campus, building, and classroom security
- anonymous reporting systems
- coordination with first responders
- behavior threat assessment and management
- school-based law enforcement
- mental health resources
- drills
- social media monitoring
These actions suggest that a school building’s physical security is directly related to the school community’s health. Increasingly, education leaders are making the case for security as a prerequisite for a robust learning environment.
Alyssa's Law and School Safety Measures
Alyssa’s Law, named after Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting victim Alyssa Alhadeff, aims to ensure that first responders can reach schools as quickly as possible, take down threats, and triage any victims. Alyssa’s Law seeks to decrease law enforcement response time when a life-threatening emergency occurs in a school. The law calls for installing silent panic alarms directly linked to law enforcement.
Alyssa’s Law was passed in New Jersey in 2019, Florida in 2020, New York in 2022, and Texas and Tenessee in May 2023. It has also been proposed in Arizona, Nebraska, Oregon, Nebraska, Virginia, and, as of just recently, Michigan, as HB 4241. The makers of the CENTEGIX CrisisAlert school safety system incorporated feedback from Marjory Stoneman Douglas public safety commission representatives into the system’s product-level design. The system fulfills the mandate of Alyssa’s Law recently introduced by Rep. Brenda Carter and similar legislation, including the school safety measures introduced by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Ready for Next Steps?
How to Choose a School Safety Alert System
Physical security measures can seem like a quick fix, but researchers have found that physical security is just one of the necessary components of school safety. A positive and supportive school climate is one of the most important parts of prevention, and school climate and physical security are directly related.
The Michigan Office of School Safety recommends purchasing school safety systems to foster a positive school climate. When discussing potential physical safety systems with vendors, a potential purchaser should ask these questions:
• Maintenance. What if the system malfunctions? Does it require a subscription? How burdensome is it to operate?
• Research. What data proves the system’s effectiveness? What do other clients report?
• Installation. How much construction is required? How disruptive is the installation process? What are the options for equipment placement?
• Satisfaction. What if the school is not satisfied with the product? Can the vendor share testimonials?
CENTEGIX CrisisAlert Fulfills Safety Mandates
The CENTEGIX CrisisAlert school safety system features the following elements, all of which fulfill the mandates of Alyssa’s Law:
-
- a mobile panic alert system featuring 100% adopted, wearable security badges
- connections to diverse emergency services technologies
- real-time coordination between multiple first responder agencies, including county, local, and on-site responders
- integration with local public safety dispatchers to transmit 911 calls and mobile activations
No Cell Phone, No Service, No Wi-Fi—No Problem
A different approach to incident response. Because in a crisis, every second matters.
How Are Your Resources Being Spent?
CENTEGIX protects over 11,500 schools across the country. We can protect your school, too.
The CENTEGIX Safety Platform™, featuring CrisisAlert™, accelerates your response to emergencies. We’ve built the CENTEGIX Safety Platform to support you in the single most critical factor of incident response: time. Because in an emergency, every second matters.
Discover federal resources to fund new safety and security initiatives in your district by exploring federal funding resources for school safety.
CENTEGIX | White Paper
The Impact of Safety on the Mental Health and Well-being of Staff and Students in K-12 Schools
When safety leads, success follows.
Michigan Rep. Brenda Carter Introduces Alyssa’s Law
Earlier this year, State Rep. Brenda Carter has taken up Alyssa’s law, which would require schools to install panic alert systems to rapidly initiate lockdowns and alert the authorities if adopted in Michigan. Watch our video to learn more.
Hear from Our Educators
We engage with teachers and staff every day to understand how CrisisAlert supports them, and here’s what they’ve shared:
A student was having trouble breathing and her vision was beginning to black out. We don’t have service in our building and it can be difficult to get ahold of the office staff, so having something to immediately alert them of emergency was incredibly helpful in a very scary situation.
I had a student who was refusing to follow directions and became very defiant. This student was beginning to get aggressive. I used my badge to alert our campus security monitor to remove the student from the situation. It is a very useful tool when the response was as immediate as it was.
A student was having a severe panic attack, trouble speaking, crying, not able to answer my questions as to what was wrong with her. I used the device to call for administrative help and it worked like it was designed to. Help arrived in a matter of seconds. I saw firsthand how well it works.
The Safety Platform™ Meets Grant-Funded Safety Measures
The CENTEGIX Safety Platform is an emergency incident response safety system that features wearable panic buttons, digital mapping software, and reunification and visitor management capabilities and generates accurate, usable data. The Safety Platform solution uses visual strobes, digital messages, and automated intercom announcements to inform everyone of a campus-wide incident and to instruct them on actions they should take. The Safety Platform meets the security infrastructure needs the Michigan school safety grants aim to address.
The Safety Platform features an analytics dashboard that assists administrators as they make safety and security decisions. A data set is generated when a staff member uses their wearable badge to request assistance. Administrators can better understand where and why and under what conditions. These administrative decisions, enabled by Platform data, contribute to the “positive and safe climate” that the safety grants aim to foster.
The CENTEGIX school safety platform provides robust and uninterrupted communication between staff members, administrators, first responders, and students. Unlike other emergency incident response systems, the Safety Platform’s technology precludes adoption and connectivity challenges. It runs on a dedicated IoT network; it’s not susceptible to Wi-Fi or cellular connectivity interruptions. And because the CrisisAlert mobile panic button is worn along with an ID badge, 100% of staff members use it. This high adoption rate means that every staff member at every location on campus can request help when they need it. CrisisAlert generates accurate location data for every alert, no matter where on campus. Therefore first responders know exactly where to go during an emergency. In many instances, this kind of rapid response can prevent tragedy.
These critical features of the CrisisAlert badge and Safety Blueprint from CENTEGIX ensure an immediate response:
Desktop takeover notifications for staff mean campus-wide alerts are never missed.
Location accuracy enables rapid response.
The system immediately connects the parties best prepared to handle the situation.
Wi-Fi and phone outages have no effect on the system.
Wearable security badges are easily accessible, lightweight, and wearable.
CENTEGIX Safety Platform can help school districts and LEAs enact these measures, making students and staff safer. The Safety platform school safety solution helps create a climate of safety by enabling staff members to request help immediately, from anywhere on campus, in any type of emergency. Under these conditions, teachers can focus on student needs, and students can focus on learning.
CENTEGIX is the leader in incident response solutions. Our Safety Platform is the fastest and easiest way for staff to request help in any emergency, from the everyday to the extreme. CENTEGIX innovates technology to empower and protect people, and leaders nationwide trust our safety solutions to provide peace of mind.
Discover the Safety Platform
Safety solutions that prioritize speed for the best outcome.
Mapping and locating capabilities provide the precise location—of emergencies, visitors, and safety assets.
A visitor management system screens and locates visitors on your campus.
Protocol development to plan for rapid incident response.
CENTEGIX CrisisAlert vs. Mobile Apps
CrisisAlert eliminates vulnerabilities related to app-only solutions and enables rapid incident response to all emergencies.
In an Emergency, You Need CrisisAlert™
Adverse situations can happen at any moment—from everyday crises such as medical emergencies, severe weather, and physical altercations to extreme situations that threaten your entire campus. The faster you get help to the right location, the better the outcome.
See how our CrisisAlert wearable mobile panic button empowers staff to get help instantly in an emergency.
Ready to Connect with a CENTEGIX Specialist to Learn More?
"*" indicates required fields
Empower Your Educators
with Safety
Explore More Safety Resources
The Impact of Building a Culture of Safety in Schools
Creating a safe and secure environment is of the utmost importance for schools. Safer environments ensure the well-being of students, teachers, and staff.
Improving Student and Staff Outcomes with Incident Response Technology
Medical emergencies can happen to anybody, anywhere. CENTEGIX’s school safety technology is there to protect everyone on campus, at all times.
2023 Safety Spring Trends Report
In this report, CENTEGIX offers its latest, comprehensive analysis of school safety incidents and staff survey feedback gathered from our CrisisAlert usage data for the 2023 spring term.
School Safety Standards by State
Schools in any state can meet school safety grant funding requirements by choosing CENTEGIX CrisisAlert™ solution.
SOLUTIONS
INDUSTRIES
RESOURCES
COMPANY
PARTNERS
CONTACT
IN A CRISIS, EVERY SECOND MATTERS™.